MIS5102 Syllabus Page 1 MIS5102 – Process Improvement and Innovation Spring 2016 About the Instructor: Richard Flanagan (Richard.Flanagan@temple.edu) 209C Speakman Hall http://community.mis.temple.edu/rflanagan/ Phone: 215-­‐204-­‐3077 Office hours: 1:30 – 3:00 Wednesday 10:00-­‐11:30 Thursday (or by appointment) Class Location and Time: TUCC 617 5:30 – 8:15, Tuesday (starting January 12, 2016) Course Description: An information system is only valuable to an organization when it enables and supports a useful business process. Students learn to assess, design, and analyze processes that foster innovation. Core concepts include designing effective solutions, identifying metrics for assessment, and communicating plans to management. Students apply these skills through analysis of business problems for actual firms. Course Objectives: • • • • • • • • • • Understand the role of process in the functioning of an organization Analyze and redesign workflow processes using a “systems thinking” approach Match requirements to align information systems with organizational needs Learn fundamental project management concepts and techniques to successfully design and implement information systems Fit systems development methodologies to their appropriate projects Apply change management theories and techniques Identify key stakeholders and communicate the impact of technology on the organization Articulate project requirements and plans through the Request for Proposal (RFP) process Perform cost/benefit analysis for resource planning and allocation Understand the challenges of leading a team MIS5102 Syllabus Page 2 Required Text and Readings: The materials for this course are drawn from multiple sources. There is no required textbook for this course. There is a set of required case studies and supplementary materials which you can purchase online (see the “Purchasing Case Studies and Other Materials” section of the syllabus). Also, there are additional assigned readings throughout the course. Some of these are chapters of books that are available for free electronically via the Temple library. The rest are available for free on the web. Evaluation and Grading Item Participation (in class and online) Case study analyses (2) Project Management Simulation Term Project (Individual and Group) Exams (2) Participation Weight Scale 10% 20% 5% 20% 45% 94 – 100 90 – 93 87 – 89 83 – 86 80 – 82 77 – 79 A A-­‐ B+ B B-­‐ C+ 73 – 76 70 – 72 67 – 69 63 – 66 60 – 62 Below 60 C C-­‐ D+ D D-­‐ F Much of your learning will occur as you prepare for and participate in discussions about the course material. The assignments, cases, and readings have has been carefully chosen to bring the real world into class discussion while also illustrating fundamental concepts. To encourage participation, 10% of the course grade is earned through preparation before class, and participation during and between classes. Evaluation is based on a consistent demonstrated engagement with the process of learning. Assessment is based on what you contribute, not simply what you know. 1) Participation between classes – To facilitate learning the course material, we will also discuss course material on the class blog in between classes. If you are preparing your analysis of case for a given week, you must post it on our discussion board by Sunday night at 11:59. Reading and commenting on these analyses will contribute to the quality of our in-­‐class discussions Each week, I will post a discussion question or two on the class blog for the following week’s topic. The question will relate to the assigned readings, a topic to be discussed in class, or a relevant current event. Every student is expected to contribute to the online class discussion at least four times each week. Online contributions will be graded on both the quality of your submissions and the overall quantity. Four substantive posts a week will be considered a B. 2) Participation during class – We will typically start each discussion with “opening” questions about the assigned readings and case study. I may ask for volunteers, or I may call on you. Students called MIS5102 Syllabus Page 3 on to answer should be able to summarize the key issues, opportunities, and challenges in the case study. All students should be prepared to answer these questions. Another important aspect of in-­‐class participation is completion of in-­‐class assignments and contribution to break-­‐out group activities. The criteria for class participation includes attendance, punctuality, level of preparation, professionalism, answering questions, discussing readings, discussing case studies, contributing to group activities, and contributing to a positive learning environment. Case Study Analyses In addition to preparing to discuss each of the assigned case studies, students will also prepare an in-­‐
depth analysis of two case studies during the semester. It is your choice which two you choose, but you must select one covered during weeks 2 through 5 and from one covered during weeks 8 through 12. For each case study I have provided several discussion questions. Pick one question and respond to it in depth. You will prepare your analysis as a slide deck. The first slide should have your name, the class (MIS5102), and the case name in the top-­‐left corner. If you want the case study to count as one of your two submissions for the semester, you must email the slide deck containing your analysis to me no later than the start of class the day the case is discussed. Because we are discussing the material in class, cases must be completed on time in order to receive credit. If you miss the deadline to turn in a case, you’ll need to select another case to submit. I strongly recommend you use Microsoft PowerPoint to prepare your slide deck. If you use another software package, it must be converted to a PDF file before it is submitted to me. If I cannot open the file, you won’t receive credit for the assignment. MIS5102 Syllabus Page 4 There is no one particular style for a good case study analysis, but the following components reflect the minimum acceptable standard: • Cite specific details regarding key facts and issues of the case. Instead of general observations that apply to any problem, use details from the case study itself. Analyses, observations, and suggestions should be tied directly to those details. • Use the notes section (in PowerPoint) to expand upon your points and provide supporting detail. This shouldn’t be more than a few sentences per slide, and can be in the form of bullet points. • You should draw on the other readings in the course to inform and support your arguments. Consider using evidence from beyond the course, such as outside research. • Take a stand. After analyzing the details of the case study, provide a clear opinion regarding your answers to the case questions. Your analysis should provide some advice to managerial decision-­‐
makers that can be applied to other situations beyond this case. • Provide a balanced perspective. Consider both the pros and cons of your opinion or recommendation. What are the potential issues with your solution and conditions that should be in place for your recommendation to be successful. • Less text is often better -­‐ you don’t need to spell everything out on the slide. Use visuals whenever you can. There are tips how to do this on the Community Site. Exams There will be both a midterm exam final exam for this course. Both exams will be comprised of short-­‐
answer and longer open-­‐ended questions. Check the schedule for dates. A missed exam can only be made up in the case of documented and verifiable extreme emergency situations. Group Project Report and Presentation The individual and group projects are related. Your individual project will contribute to your team project effort. Therefore, coordination is required in choosing topics for both projects. A detailed description of the assignment will be posted to the class website. Students may choose their own groups of about five members each. Because group work requires close coordination, I strongly recommend considering compatibility in availability (e.g., work and class schedules, work and home locations, and other constraints) before finalizing group membership. Check the schedule for project deliverable dates. MIS5102 Syllabus Page 5 Late Assignment Policy An assignment is considered late if it is turned in after the assignment deadlines stated above. No late assignments will be accepted without penalty. • The project management simulation and individual report will be assessed a 20% penalty each day they are late. No credit is given for assignments turned in over five calendar days past the due date. • Case analyses cannot be submitted late under any circumstances. If you miss the deadline, you’ll need to choose another case study to submit. • You must submit all assignments, even if no credit is given. If you skip an assignment, an additional 10 points will be subtracted from your final grade in the course. • Weekly write-­‐ups cannot be turned in late. If you miss the deadline you will receive no credit for it, although the additional 10 point grade penalty does not apply here. • Plan ahead and backup your work. Equipment failure is not an acceptable reason for turning in an assignment late. Classroom Etiquette The environment you and your fellow students create in class directly impacts the value that is gained from the course. To that end, the following are my expectation of your conduct in this class: • Arrive on time and stay until the end of class. • Turn off cell phones, pagers and alarms while in class. • Limit the use of electronic devices (e.g., laptop, tablet computer) to class-­‐related usage such as taking notes. Restrict the use of an Internet connection (e.g., checking email, Internet browsing, sending instant messages) to before class, during class breaks, or after class. • During class time speak to the entire class (or breakout group) and let each person “take their turn.” • Be fully present and remain present for the entirety of each class meeting. Purchasing Case Studies and Other Materials You can purchase the assigned case studies online from Harvard Business School (HBS) Publishing. All of the case studies are available through a page I have specifically set up for this course at the HBS Publishing website (link available on the site). You must buy the cases and the online project management simulation as a set. Otherwise you will be using a different simulation and it will negatively affect your grade. Make sure you use this URL (don’t just search for my name or the case!) and double-­‐check to make sure you are ordering the correct case. You will need to register in order to purchase the case. Once you purchase the case studies and simulation through the site, you can immediately download an electronic copy. If you lose your copy, you can download additional copies until the end of the semester. MIS5102 Syllabus The materials used in the course are: Week Number Type Page 6 Name 2 UV3505-­‐PDF-­‐ENG UV3506-­‐PDF-­‐ENG UV3507-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case Colby General Hospital (A, B, and C) 3 W11287-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case Wawa: Supply Change Management 4 606515-­‐PDF-­‐ENG 606029-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case Pharmacy Service Improvement at CVS (A and B) 5 612017-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case Building Watson: It’s not so elementary my dear! 6 308049-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case The AtekPC Project Management Office 9 HEC001-­‐PDF-­‐ENG HEC002-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case Reinventing the Practices of Distance Information Systems Development: CGI and the Hubble Project (A and B) 10 4700-­‐HTM-­‐ENG Simulation Project Management Simulation: Scope, Resources, Schedule V2 11 909E23-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case Partners Healthcare System: Transforming Healthcare Delivery Through Information Management 12 4059-­‐PDF-­‐ENG Case MediSys Corp.: The IntensCare Product Development Team Citation Guidelines If you use text, figures, and data in reports that was created by others you must identify the source and clearly differentiate your work from the material that you are referencing. If you fail to do so you are plagiarizing. There are many different acceptable formats that you can use to cite the work of others (see some of the resources below). The formats are not as important as the intent. You must clearly show the reader what is your work and what is a reference to someone else’s work. Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty Plagiarism and academic dishonesty can take many forms. The most obvious is copying from another student’s exam, but the following are also forms of this: • Copying material directly, word-­‐for-­‐word, from a source (including the Internet) • Using material from a source without a proper citation • Turning in an assignment from a previous semester as if it were your own • Having someone else complete your homework or project and submitting it as if it were your own • Using material from another student’s assignment in your own assignment Plagiarism and cheating are serious offenses, and behavior like this will not be tolerated in this class. In cases of cheating, both parties will be held equally responsible, i.e. both the student who shares the work and the student who copies the work. Penalties for such actions are given at my discretion, and can range from a failing grade for the individual assignment, to a failing grade for the entire course, to expulsion from the program. MIS5102 Syllabus Page 7 Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities The University has adopted a policy on Student and Faculty Academic Rights and Responsibilities (Policy # 03.70.02) which can be accessed through the following link: http://policies.temple.edu/getdoc.asp?policy_no=03.70.02 Grading Criteria The following are the criteria used for evaluating assignments. You can roughly translate a letter grade as the midpoint in the scale (for example, an A-­‐ equates to a 91.5). Criteria Grade The assignment consistently exceeds expectations. It demonstrates originality of thought and creativity throughout. Beyond completing all of the required elements, new concepts and ideas are detailed that transcend general discussions along similar topic areas. There are no mechanical, grammatical, or organization issues that detract from the ideas. A-­‐ or A The assignment consistently meets expectations. It contains all the information prescribed for the assignment and demonstrates a command of the subject matter. There is sufficient detail to cover the subject completely but not too much as to be distracting. There may be some procedural issues, such as grammar or organizational challenges, but these do not significantly detract from the intended assignment goals. B-­‐, B, B+ The assignment fails to consistently meet expectations. That is, the assignment is complete C-­‐, C, C+ but contains problems that detract from the intended goals. These issues may be relating to content detail, be grammatical, or be a general lack of clarity. Other problems might include not fully following assignment directions. The assignment constantly fails to meet expectations. It is incomplete or in some other way consistently fails to demonstrate a firm grasp of the assigned material. Below C-­‐ Acknowledgements This syllabus represents the collaborative efforts of MIS Department Professors Schuff, Weinberg, Yoo, and Johnson.